The NEMO Aurora Highrise is a great tent for those wanting something spacious and easy to set up. We love the big door on the front and the fact that you can see out of the windows on all four sides – even when it’s raining. This tent is made with high-quality materials, so it’s ready to rock if a storm comes your way, and it’s plenty durable so it’ll last for many years if you treat it with care. You can get the bigger Aurora Highrise for the same price as the smaller version of comparable tents, so we think it’s an excellent value. See how the Highrise stacks up to the competition on our list of the Best Camping Tents.
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NEMO Aurora Highrise Tent Review
Published:
September 2, 2022
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Quick Specs
NEMO Aurora Highrise
Size: 4 Person
Price: $400
Packed Weight: 15 lbs. 14 oz.
Dimensions (LxWxH): 100x90x75 in.
Size: 6-Person
Price: $500
Packed Weight: 18 lbs. 14 oz.
Dimensions (LxWxH): 120 x 100 x 77 in.
Pros
- Quality poles & materials
- Quick and easy setup
- Spacious
- Excellent ventilation
- Good value
- 2 doors
- Fairly lightweight & compact
Cons
- Taller options for people over 6 ft.
- Half door in the back
- Not our favorite stuff sack design
- Storage pockets are just ok
Pros
QUALITY POLES & MATERIALS
The poles that come with the Highrise are made of aluminum, so they’re strong and lightweight. Aluminum poles will far outlast fiberglass ones that come with cheaply-made tents, and they’re more resilient since they’ll flex before they break. The heavy-duty, 150-denier fabrics that make up the tent body and fly will hold up well for many adventures, and we think the plaid floor is a nice touch.
QUICK & EASY SETUP
One of the things we like most about the Highrise is how easy it is to pitch. The pole structure is simple and straightforward. And there’s color coding to eliminate any guesswork when getting the pieces oriented. Like most dome tents, two long poles cross at the peak and seat in the four corners. After that, two short poles slip into sleeves over the doors to pull the walls taut and maximize space. It only takes a few minutes to pitch this tent as a pair. We found it very intuitive the first time we set it up, and there’s a handy diagram printed on the tag in the stuff sack.
SPACIOUS
The 6P Highrise has a 77-inch peak height, so it’s tall enough for anyone under 6’ 4” to stand comfortably in the center. Generous floor dimensions give you plenty of room for a queen-size camping mattress, and you’ll still have some room on all sides and a larger space at the foot for gear. The walls are nearly vertical too, so you have usable space all the way to the edges. We went with the 6P Highrise because we have a toddler and want to be able to fit two Wide Exped MegaMat 10 sleeping pads inside. There’s also a 4P version that’s comfy for two adults if you prefer to keep your footprint a bit smaller.
EXCELLENT VENTILATION
Good airflow is really important to keep the interior of your tent comfortable and condensation-free. The Highrise has mesh windows on all sides to keep fresh air circulating. We also love being able to see out in four directions whether conditions are hot or rainy.
GOOD VALUE
The Highrise is a spendy tent, but it’s a good value when put up against comparable camping tents in the current market. It’s a bit more expensive than a couple of our other favorite tents including the Eureka Space Camp 6 and REI Skyward 6, but it’s less pricey than the REI Wonderland 6. You can get the 6P Highrise for about the same price as the 4P versions of a few tents, like the REI Wonderland.
2 DOORS
We’re big fans of the huge front door on the Highrise. It makes entry easy and offers wide-angle views of the surrounding beauty. There’s also a really convenient stash pocket that keeps the door fabric securely tucked out of the way when it’s unzipped. The Highrise has a back door as well, which makes it more livable for multiple people going in and out. The second door is smaller and doesn’t open up as wide as the front one, but it’s still very handy.
FAIRLY LIGHTWEIGHT & COMPACT
The Highrise is fairly small to pack and store compared to many of the large frontcountry camping tents out there. The 6P weighs about 19 lbs., so it’s not something you’ll want to carry a great distance, but it’s easy to maneuver around the campsite. For comparison, the similarly sized REI Wonderland 6 weighs just under 23 lbs.
Cons
NOT OUR FAVORITE STUFF SACK DESIGN
The bag for the Highrise looks a lot like a duffel with a long zipper across the top. It works ok, but you have to roll the tent very tightly to get the tent back into the bag. If you aren’t a neat and tidy tent roller, you may want to swap out the bag that comes with the Highrise for a larger stuff sack.
TALLER OPTIONS FOR PEOPLE OVER 6 FT.
Anyone under 6’4” will be able to stand comfortably in the center of the Highrise 6. But since it’s a dome-style tent the ceiling slopes down a bit as you move toward the edges. If you’re tall and you really want to be able to stand up fully and walk around in your tent, you might be better off with a shelter that has more headroom throughout. Good examples of tents with dispersed headroom are the REI Wonderland, Skyward, and Coleman Octagon.
HALF DOOR IN THE BACK
We’re glad the Highrise has two doors, but we wish both of them opened wide like the one at the front. The back door of this tent is half the size and doesn’t have the nifty stuff pocket to secure the door flap. The rainfly also only opens halfway in the back and there’s no way to roll the material back if you want to leave it open. The Highrise still has a lot of good things going for it, but we prefer the dual, oval-shaped doors on the Marmot Limestone and REI Wonderland.
RAINFLY ZIPPERS CAN SNAG
The rainfly zippers on the Copper Spur do have a tendency to snag on the storm flaps at times, especially when wet (we find this to be a common tent problem). This is easily avoided with the use of two hands and a little care, though we do see it as a small downside.
STORAGE POCKETS ARE JUST OK
The Highrise tent has four hanging mesh pockets inside that make it easy to keep track of small items. The pockets are ok, but they aren’t the easiest to reach while tucked into our sleeping bags. A few larger pockets in the corners and in different positions around the tent would be helpful, but it’s not a huge deal.
Bottom line
The NEMO Aurora Highrise is a very comfortable and user-friendly tent with very few downsides. We may still gravitate towards our all-time favorite, the REI Wonderland, for some car camping trips, but the Highrise will be high on our list when we need a tent that’s quicker to set up and a bit more compact (road trips!) The Highrise is one of the few tents we’ve seen that has windows on all four sides, and it’s one of the more affordable, high-quality tents on the market.
